Kingdom Hearts 3: Search for the Essences
by VincentValentine13
Summary: Sora is captured by the Heartless for reasons unknown, and Kairi, Riku and their friend Victor are going to find him! This thing's been fixed up, so please R&R.


Hey there everybody! It's me, VincentValentine13! I really liked the concept for this story, but when I read over it, I realizede just how lame it was, so I decided to revamp it. Hope you like it.

P.S. I don't own any of the characters except for Victor!

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Sora sat alone on the end of the wooden dock, his eyes gazing into and beyond the sunset. A warm breeze blew across the water and ruffled his hair slightly, but he didn't notice. His thoughts were far from Destiny Islands, back to the many worlds he had visited. It had been three years since that time, and he had grown into a young man, no longer the child he had been. Things had changed, even his home had changed. He thought he would be happy to be back on his island, safe with Riku and Kairi, but that wasn't the case. After all the worlds and places he had been, Destiny Island was just too plain. He longed to return to the stars and travel alongside Goofy and Donald to all the many different worlds.

Footsteps behind him caused him to turn around. Kairi was approaching him from behind. She was now seventeen, and was much more…developed. Whenever he saw her, his stomach started jumping and doing backflips. She had grown out her hair, and now it came down to just above her waist. She had on a light purple skirt and a white tank-top, and she still wore the gold bracelets she had worn since they were young. She settled down on the end of dock, next to Sora and gazed out to sea as well. After a few moments of silence, she turned to her friend and smiled.

"Sora," she started, her blue eyes shimmering in the sunlight, "What's the matter? You haven't spoken much in three days."

"I'm sorry," Sora answered, turning to face her. Her sweet face was glowing, and Sora couldn't help but smile. "I've just been thinking about things."

"Like what?"

"Well, I kinda miss seeing other worlds, you know? Like, after all the things that I've seen, to come back here seems kinda…"

"Anti-climactic," Kairi finished for him.

"Yeah," Sora nodded sheepishly.

"I understand," Kairi reassured him.

"Thanks, I just feel like a jerk for not wanting to be home."

"Well, if you'd quit moping around, you might feel better," came a voice at the end of the dock. The two turned to see their friend Riku approaching. Riku was only a year older then the two of them, but he never acted like their superior. He was a little taller then Sora, with long, silver hair. His face was a bit more angular, and he was a bit more muscular then Sora, his sleeveless shirt showing that fact very well.

He walked down the wooden dock, and as he approached, Sora and Kairi saw that he was being followed by a small creature. It resembled a small bear, though it had a red pompom on its head and little bat wings on its back. As Riku stopped in front his friends, the little bear landed beside him and let out a small 'kupo' sound.

"Guys, this moogle just showed up with a letter," he explained. Moogles were magic creatures, and the only things, besides the Heartless, that were able to travel in space and cross the barriers of the worlds.

"What did it say?" Kairi asked, stading up and smoothing out her skirt. Sora noticed she had been doing that a lot lately, almost out of habit, it seemed.

"I haven't read it yet," Riku answered, taking an envelope from the moogle. He opened the seal, which all three recognized as the seal of King Mickey, and pulled out the letter.

"Dear Riku, Sora and Kairi,

I hope that this letter finds you well. I am writing to say hello and thank you for the many things the three of you have done for me. I am also writing to inform you that Cid believes that he has found away to penetrate the walls that block off the worlds. We wished for you to be the first to know, and to expect a visit within the next week or so. Sincerely Yours, King Mickey."

"Do you really think that Cid can break the barriers?" Kairi asked excitedly.

"I don't know," Riku answered, "Though, it would be nice, wouldn't it?"

"Sure would," Kairi nodded. Sora just continued to sit silently. He listened to his friend's chatter, but didn't really think about it. His mind now was focused on other worlds. What if it worked? What if he could go back? That would be fantastic, getting to see all his friends again. He couldn't wait.

The next morning, Sora wandered below the paupu tree, gazing up at its strange fruit. Footsteps behind him brought his attention, and he turned around to see Victor. Victor was a friend of his and had lived on the island his entire life. He was the same age as Riku, but was much less vocal. He always wore black, from his shirt to his shoes, and had a black leather belt with flat studs on it. His shoulder-length, black hair always seemed to be in his eyes unless he was talking.

"What's wrong?" he asked as he came up beside his friend.

"Nothing really," Sora answered.

"Kairi told me about yesterday," Victor explained, "About you and about the letter."

"So what?"

"Well, I wanted to know if it fazed you any. Kairi said you were longing for other worlds, so I thought you would be excited."

"I am," Sora answered, distantly, "I just feel down, you know?"

"I know that feeling well," Victor nodded, swinging himself to a sitting position on the paupu tree. He grabbed one of the fruits and looked at it. "Do you remember when this island was destroyed?"

"How could I forget?"

"Well, I was cast into another world," Victor explained. Sora recalled him describing it when he and and Riku had returned.

"When I got back, I felt sick to my stomach, knowing that there were other worlds out there and I was stuck on this one. I found my self moping a bit, but then got over it, seeing that making a fuss over it wouldn't change anything anyway."

Sora smiled at his practical friend. Victor had always taken things in black and white, though he seemed to be constantly moping, so that didn't surprise him.

"Besides," the young man continued, "I'm looking forward to seeing if this ship works as well. I want to go back just as badly as you do."

"What was the world?"

"I never learned the name," Victor answered, "I just met some people there, these three-" but before he could finished, a scream of fear came from the otherside of the island. The two turned around quickly, in the direction of the cry.

"That sounded like Kairi," Sora said, running off. Victor followed behind, his face showing just as much worry as Sora's did. He was never very emotional, but when the situation arose, he could be just as upset or happy as anyone else.

The two raced to the otherside of the island and were met with a startling sight.

Standing around Kairi, shambling forward menacingly, was a group of Heartless.

These weren't normal Heartless, Sora noted. These Heartless stood about his height, their forms seeming much more human. Their bright, golden eyes were much more human as well. In their hands were gripped wicked looking blades, and their chests had large, heart-shaped holes in them.

Sora and Victor came closer, Sora grabbing up a heavy stick, and Victor drawing the wooden chakrams he kept on his belt. Neither weapons would stand a chance against the Heartless, but they were better then nothing. The creaturse turned to see the young men approaching them, and seemed to spread apart. The closer Sora came, the more the Heartless distanced themselves, and after they had dispersed far enough, Sora was able to see another shock.

Lying on the ground, bloody but breathing, was Riku. Sora ran towards Kairi and Riku, while Victor glanced around for any sign of the Heartless. The beings had simply disappeared, as if they had never been there to begin with. Sora knelt over his friend.

"The Heartless appeared," Kairi explained, tears welling up in her eyes, "And Riku was trying to protect me. That's how he ended up like this."

Along Riku's arms and legs were large cuts and bruises. His clothes were tattered and torn, and his cheek and left eye were turning purple with another bruise. Victor came over to join them, and saw what had happened to their friend.

Riku started to groan quietly, then opened his right eye, his left one already swelling shut. He smiled slightly, then started to whisper something.

"Sora," he started, then coughed, "You lazy bum. I'd a thought you would have come to help sooner; or were you napping?"

Kairi, tears falling freely from her eyes now, bent over and put her arms around Riku's neck. He winced when she did, but didn't say anything. Sora felt rather somewhat jealous, but dismissed those feelings. He stood up, and looked around, his eyes scanning for any sign of the Heartless. The only thing out of the ordinary was a circle in the white sand.

He stepped cautiously towards it, and Kairi looked up.

"That was where they came from," she said, "Please be careful, Sora."

He wasn't even listening, though. Withhin the circle was a strange, swirling pattern, and his eyes followed it around. He felt drawn to it, and the beautiful shapes within, and before he knew what he was doing, he had placed a foot within the ring.

Suddenly, his body went numb. Around him, the Heartless appeared, looking at him with a blank gaze. Kairi, still watching in disbelief, gasped, and Victor stumbled through the sand, trying to reach his trapped friend. Before he could reach him, however, he was intercepted by a Heartless that grabbed him by the collar and flung him back into the sand. A blade appeared in its hand, and it placed its foot on Victor's chest and its blade pointed at his throat.

The Heartless around Sora grabbed his arms and started to lift him into the air. A hole appeared in the sky, and the Heartless carried the paralyzed young man into it. The hole disappeared when they entered it, and the Heartless pinning Victor vanished as well. He rose to his feet, a stunned look on his usually emotionless face. Riku struggled to his feet, and Victor turned and rushed to his aid. He put the wounded Rimu's arm around his shoulder, and Kairi did likewise with the other.

As the group stared to the place the friend had stood, the ground suddenly came alive with Heartless. They rose up, and came towards the defenseless three. Victor and Kairi struggled to help Riku walk towards the secret cave, the only place they guessed the Heartless wouldn't go, but found the place blocked off. Victor tried to fend off the beings when the struck out, but quickly found himself in almost the same state as Riku. No matter where they looked, Heartless were swarming; there was no hope.

Suddenly, the sound of engines were heard overhead, and a blast of light into the sand sent the Heartless flying. Riku, Kairi and Victor all looked up in amazement as a huge gummi ship landed on the sand, kicking up a huge cloud and scattering the mob of Heartless. A door opened on the side, and a rope ladder dropped out of the opening. The three made their way to the ladder, and after helping Riku up, the other two followed behind. The door slammed closed behind them and the three sprawled out on the floor, gasping for breath. When they finally sat up, they were greeted by surprise. A man in a black, leather jacket, black pants and a white shirt stood before them. He had a long scar across his right eye and his face had a serious se t, his brown eyes very hard and focused.

"Are you three alright?" he asked.

"I think so," Kairi answered. When she saw who it was, her face became bright, and a huge, relieved smile spread across her face. "Oh, thank you, Leon!"

"It's no problem," Leon shrugged. He started to walk towards a door, but stopped when he saw Riku. He helped Riku to his feet, then walked him through the door, followed by Victor and Kairi.

"Friend of yours?" Victor whispered suspisciously. He didn't like the idea of the man showing up exactly when they needed help.

"Yes," Kairi nodded, "He helped Sora fight the Heartless, and knows a lot about them."

Victor shrugged his shoulders as they entered what appeared to be bridge of the ship. Sitting on the seats in front of screens around the captain's chair were two women, who looked like they were in their early twenties. One had on a pink dress with a large pink bow holding her long, braided ponyail. The other had a short, green shirt and tan shorts. Her brown hair was held by a head band and on her feet was a pair of orange shoes.

The two women turned around in the chairs and smiled. The girl in pink then took on a serious tone as she went to Riku, whom Leon had placed in a chair. She placed her hands on his wounds and a breathed a spell. Instantly, the wounds were healed, and the bruises disappeared.

"You really should be more careful," she said quietly. Riku thanked her as Victor and Kairi took seats next to him.

"I hate to break this up," a gruff voice said suddenly. The captain's chair turned around, revealing a blonde haired man. His face looked like it was stuck in a permanent frown. He wore a white shirt and blue pants. Sticking out of his mouth was a toothpick, which moved every now and then as he chewed on it. Positioned on his forehead was a pair of goggles. He continued his interjection, "But we have important things to discuss."

"That's right," Leon agreed, "But first, introductions. Kairi, who's your friend here?"

"My name is Victor Valentine," Victor said quickly, before Kairi could answer.

"I'm Yuffie," the girl in green said.

"I'm Aeris," the girl in pink added, "And that man," she gestured to the captain, "Is Cid."

"Now that introductions are over," Leon said, "We have to talk." Riku, Kairi and Victor nodded their heads.

"Let me start," Riku said, "What's going on? Why are the Heartless here?"

"Did you get the letter from the king about the ship and barriers?"

"Yeah," Riku answered.

"Well, the ability of this ship hasn't been tested yet. The ship wasn't able to pierce the barriers, it was the fact that the Heartless had returned."

"But how?"

"That, we don't know."

"The strange thing is that the Heartless aren't appearing on all worlds, though."

"Really?" Kairi asked, "Then why did they appear on our world?"

"All we can tell is that the Heartless are flocking to places with extremely strong hearts," Aerith added.

"So that explains why they came to Destiny Islands," Victor reasoned out loud. "Sora was the Keyblade master, the strongest heart."

"I wondered where Sora was," Cid replied, "Where is he?"

"He was taken," Kairi said sadly, remembering the Heartless who had taken him, and the three explained what had happened.

After they finished, the entire group sat in silence, digesting the information given to them. After awhile, Cid spoke up.

"Leon, we're approaching Hollow Bastion."

"Good," Leon answered, "Land, and we'll begin to lay out a plan.

The group sat in silence, each person contemplating the situation. Sora, the only person able to hold the Keyblade, was gone. Without the Keyblade, the Heartless could never truly be defeated. Riku looked at his healed wounds and thought about how powerless he was. He had spent so much time battling the darkness, both outside and within himself, but even his expiriences weren't enough to fight against these Heartless. They were stronger now, more powerful, but how? Things just didn't make any sense. Frustrated, Riku crossed his arms and tried to think of how he could better himself, make himself more able to battle this evil.

After what seemed like hours, the gummi ship landed on a large platform to the rear of Hollow Bastion. As Riku climbed out of the ship, he saw that the place hadn't changed much in the years since he had been there, though he didn't have much time to compare his memories with the present, for Leon led the group down a series of hallways and into the chapel. Waiting for them there was a tall man, dress in a dark blue. His dirty blonde hair was spiked every which way, and his green eyes glowed intensely. Around his neck was a maroon cape that wrapped around the bottom of his face loosely and fell all the way down to his feet, the ends tattered and torn. On his left hand was a gauntlet with clawed fingertips.

"I've been waiting, Leon," the man said quietly, no trace of emotion in his voice.

"We had to make a stop," Leon explained, indicating Riku and company.

"Cloud!" Aerith exclaimed happily as she ran to him. She threw her arms around the startled man, and after a moment he gently wrapped his arms around her as well. Kairi threw a glance over to Riku, but when he turned to look at her, she looked away quickly.

"So, what's going on," Riku said, turning again to Leon, "Who's behind this?"

"We don't know," Leon said.

"Nor do we know what their intentions are," Aerith added.

"All we know is what we told you, that the Heartless are striking at worlds that contain extremly strong hearts."

"Maybe it's just an infestation," Yuffie suggested.

"No," Cloud shook his head, "They're too organized. Besides, someone had to release them, otherwise, they wouldn't even be here."

"That's true," Yuffie said, mocking Leon by leaning against the wall the same way he was.

"Are the Heartless returning to worlds that had the Keyhole sealed?" Riku asked.

"No, they aren't," Cid replied.

"Perhaps they're looking for something specific," Victor suggested, "Like Sora. Isn't he the only one able to wield the Keyblade?"

"Not nessecarily," Riku answered, "I was the Keyblade master for a short while." He remembered that time well, when he had been tricked by a witch named Maleficient.

"The only question about that is who is the master now," Leon said quietly.

No one said anything for some time, the Kairi spoke up.

"Maybe the Keyblade isn't needed."

"What?" Cloud said, his voice holding a hint of surprise.

"Well, have any of the worlds dissappeared yet?"

"None that we know of," Cid replied.

"Maybe they aren't looking for hearts of the world, but people's hearts. Maybe they're needed for something."

"Therefore," Victor cut in, "The Keyblade isn't what we need. We need something for people's hearts, not the world's."

"An interesting idea," Leon nodded.

"But what seals people's hearts?" Yuffie asked, confused.

"I don't know," Leon said, shaking his head.

"Well, we can't sit around here waiting for the Heartless to tell us," Cid exclaimed, "We need to get out there and do something while we can!"

"That's right," Cloud agreed, "So now we simply need a course of action."

"Well, I'm going to look for Sora," Kairi spoke up, "He saved me, so now I'll save him."

Riku's eyes widened in shock. "But you can't do that," he exclaimed, "You're a Princess of Heart! What if the Heartless come for you again?"

"Well, that's why you'll be with me, silly," she explained, her voice regaining its youthful cheer. It had been a while since Riku had heard that voice, ever since they had all returned to Destiny Isle. It seemed that whenever Sora was unhappy, she was unhappy, and because Sora had been in a slump since their return, Kairi had been likewise. Now, Riku saw the familiar twinkle return to her eyes, and when she turned and smiled at him, explaining her plan, he couldn't help but blush slightly.

"You two won't be enough to combat the Heartless," Leon said, shaking his head, "Riku is the only thing keeping you safe."

"Let me go," Victor answered, "I'll keep them out of trouble."

"And what do you think you'll do?" Cloud scoffed, "Who are you again?"

"My name is Victor Valentine," Victor replied, his face growing serious, almost sounding insulted, "I am not afraid of anything." As if to accentuate his point, he gestured to Leon's gunblade. The man looked uncertainly to the young man, but drew the blade and handed it to him. Victor took a few steps away, then set the blade in his hand. In one swift motion, he brought the blade around his head, brought it in a downward swing, then threw it into the air, letting it spin freely. It flew up then came back down and Victor caught the hilt and spun around, holding it at his waist as if it was in his belt.

Riku and Kairi stared on in amazement, though Cloud and Leon didn't seem too impressed.

"Fine," Cloud huffed, "But you'll still need a weapon."

"I can handle myself," Victor replied. Turning to Kairi and Riku, he smiled and said excitedly, "What are you two waiting for? Are we going to find Sora or not?"


End file.
